HEALTH ALERT: Norovirus Affecting Many in Central Virginia

CHESTERFIELD (WRIC) – The
norovirus is easily spread person to person and it flourishes in cold weather. You
should all you can to keep from catching it.

Ron Despain and his wife Kathy
have had a miserable few days.

“We spent a lot of time in
the bathroom… nausea… had blankets on me keeping warm.”

The couple, who runs Kathy's
Kopies in Midlothian, is now better, but the norovirus hit them hard and spread
to their kids.

Many in Central Virginia are
dealing with the same thing – cramping, severe diarrhea, abdominal pain, even
fever.

“It's quite a hearty virus
and it can last on indoor surfaces and inanimate objects,” says Chesterfield Health
Department Director Dr. Parham Jaberi.

The health department is
seeing an increase in norovirus this month, likely because people are spending
more time indoors where people are closely working together or are very close
to each other

Experts say the main thing
you should do if you come down with the norovirus is to stay at home. Don't try
to go out to work or send your kids to school.
Also, continually make sure that your hands are being washed. Doctors say the main health concern with
norovirus is dehydration, so drink lots of water and if you're not feeling
better after a few days, see your doctor. Last of all, should you feel sick for
more than a couple of days, call your doctor.

Ron and his wife are doing
what they can to make sure they don't get it again.

“Once we recovered, we got
the bleach out and sanitized the whole house.”